Suffolk County Police Commissioner Timothy D. Sini is invited to testify at a hearing entitled “Border Insecurity: The Rise of MS-13 and Other Transnational Criminal Organizations” before the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. The purpose of the hearing is to examine the presence and activity of gangs and transnational criminal organizations in American communities and the nexus to border security. Commissioner Sini has been asked to provide insight on the impact of MS-13 activity in the Suffolk County, NY community, describe the police department’s initiatives in eradicating gangs and make recommendations to the Federal Government on how it can further assist in these efforts.

Timothy D. Sini became the 13th Commissioner of the Suffolk County Police Department in January of 2016. Sini revitalized the relationships with federal law enforcement partners, including the FBI, U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Eastern District of New York and the Southern District of New York, DHS/HSI, DEA, ATF, and the U.S. Marshals. Sini engaged federal and regional law enforcement partners to create the Long Island Heroin Task Force, FireArm Suppression Team (the “FAST” Team), and the SCPD Shield counter-terrorism program. The new initiatives led to the lowest recorded crime statistics in department history.

In September 2016, the Department, under Sini’s leadership, assembled a robust team of Department, regional and federal law enforcement partners to eradicate MS-13 and other gangs from Suffolk County. To date, more than 200 members of MS-13 have been arrested on local and federal charges, including RICO offenses.

During his testimony, Sini is expected to describe recent trends of transnational gang-related activity in the SCPD’s jurisdiction; factors he believes are contributing to the rise of gang activity in the community; the challenges the Department faces in combating gang activity; and the important partnership between the Department and residents of the affected communities.

Sini is also expected to describe the Department’s cooperation with federal law enforcement agencies responsible for securing the U.S. border and insight into any policies he believes Congress and the Administration should consider to empower law-enforcement officials, educators, and other community stakeholders to stop recruitment and violence perpetrated by transnational criminal organizations.

Sini will testify at “Border Insecurity: The Rise of MS-13 and Other Transnational Criminal Organizations” hearing before the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs on Wednesday, May 24, 2017, at 10 a.m. in SD-342 in the Dirksen Senate Office Building.